Thanks to the drop in the Australian dollar and the beginning of summer in the southern hemisphere, now is the time to plan travel to the exotic islands around Australia. Here are a few of our favorites.

Palm trees and sand beach host a single luxury resort and research station on Heron Island, at the southern end of the Great Barrier Reef. While tourists head north to the developed vacation playground of the Whitsunday Islands, locals seeking a more rarified experience book a stay on Heron. From October to March, hundreds of Green and Loggerhead turtles return to breed here and the resort teaches its guests how to responsibly turtle-watch.

Visitors to Perth and Fremantle on Australia's western coast aren't without a tropical island day trip option, thanks to the existence of Rottnest Island, only a two-hour ferry ride away. The unappealing name is due to the island's population of quokkas, friendly and harmless little marsupials not found anywhere else in the world, who were mistaken for large rats by Dutch sailors in the 17th century. Visitors rent bikes to reach lighthouses, inland lakes, and the ocean beaches with renowned…